An unwelcome trip down memory lane for baseball

?Distrust has returned to baseball. Players are falling in line behind the union. Clubs are doing the same for the commissioner and his once-sacred drug-testing program.

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Inside the Diamondbacks clubhouse, some will wonder what they cannot say:

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Did a cheater steal our chance to play for a World Series trophy? Did Ryan Braun rain on our parade?

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"We all know what he did to us (in that playoff series)," Diamondbacks veteran Willie Bloomquist said while ultimately supporting Braun two weeks ago. "I'm not saying things would've been different, but, shoot, he killed us in that series. He really did."

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Let the suspicions begin anew. Just when Major League Baseball emerged from the wreckage of the Steroid Era, the sport takes a detour down memory lane. Manny Ramirez is back in uniform, taking cuts at Municipal Stadium, required to serve a 50-game suspension for failing a drug test. Braun, the reigning National League MVP, avoided the same penalty when his attorney poked holes in the chain of custody.

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Braun might be innocent, as he firmly attested at a Friday news conference in Maryvale. But to most people he's free on a technicality. The lingering skepticism will create some uncomfortable moments in the Cactus League 2012.

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This is an enormous bother for Bud Selig, who pinned his legacy on cleaning up the game, who frequently and justifiably brags about pioneering the biggest drug reform in the history of sports.

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Braun beat that system by effectively impugning the sample collector, who has yet to explain why he stored Braun's urine at his home for 44 hours. The collector's decision has been described as a standard procedure during off hours, when samples can't be shipped. It has also been criticized as unprofessional and sloppy, thereby mocking Selig's entire system.

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Braun took it a step further on Friday, calling Selig's prized program "fatally flawed," an assessment sure to infuriate the commissioner.

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That's why MLB reacted so harshly, publicly disagreeing with the arbiter's decision at the expense of one of its more-popular and impactful players. And so the lines are drawn, with those in uniform wondering why so many confidential drug tests keep showing up in the media.

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Locally, the story is nauseating: Had they beaten the Brewers, many Diamondbacks players firmly believe they would've secured a berth in the World Series, citing matchup advantages against the Cardinals. And if MLB is embittered by the Braun decision, isn't it fair for Arizonans to feel the same?

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From this point forward, no one on the Diamondbacks will dare say a bad word about Braun. The fans are another story.

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For years, the Diamondbacks were battered by Barry Bonds, to the point where interim manager Al Pedrique didn't pitch to him for an entire series. They've defended one of their own amid unproven suspicions, when Luis Gonzalez was impugned after hitting 57 home runs in 2001. We watched the team wash its hands of Jason Grimsley after federal agents searched his home. We still cheer for Matt Williams, even though he's got the scarlet letter.

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But this is a different twist: The Brewers won 3 of 5 games to eliminate the Diamondbacks in the first round of the 2011 playoffs. In those three victories, Braun had eight hits in 11 at-bats, scored five runs and hit one of the more-majestic home runs you'll ever see.

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After one of those games, I sat in the media room at Miller Park, marveling at the young slugger. When he was done speaking, I followed him out of the room. I heard him mutter to friends about having to take a drug test in the playoffs.

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He seemed agitated, almost offended. I scribbled the scene in my notebook, where it held no context and remained dormant for months.

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Now, it's a moment I'll never forget. For MLB, it's a moment cloaked in suspicion, dampening the mood of a fresh, new season. And that brings the story back to Arizona, where we occasionally get a bad rap for unpredictable, uncouth behavior.

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We weren't very kind to Prince Fielder last summer. Tiger Woods is only now contemplating a return to our big golf tournament. And, surely, you remember the vitriol when David Stern became the Valley's Most Wanted?

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So when you see Braun around the Cactus League, remember, show some class and restraint.

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Respect the game. Try to respect the process. Even if you're struggling to respect the player.

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Saturday, February 25, 2012 at 07:28 PM

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Source: http://s.azcentral.com/home/Blog/DanBickley/156062

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